Liberal Democrats’ leader Sir Ed Davey told volunteers the Tories were “on the run”, as he signed “magic spatulas of victory” during an election visit in Kent.
Accompanied by MP Mike Martin in the shade of Grove Park, Royal Tunbridge Wells, on Wednesday, Sir Ed said his party stood for “traditional British values”, taking that mantle from the Tories.
The Lib Dems are targeting “big gains” from the Conservatives in the south, in seats which he described as “two-horse races”, while in the north they are “fighting” Reform.
Speaking to the PA news agency, Sir Ed said: “We’re optimistic we can make real gains from the Conservatives here in Tunbridge Wells, across Kent, across many of the areas that are being contested.
“They’re close run fights between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives, so two-horse races,
“Reform isn’t really present in most of the areas that we are fighting. We are fighting against Reform in the north of England.”
“The vast tracts of the country where we’ve made big gains from the Conservatives, Reform aren’t really very strong.
“We are gaining votes from lifelong Conservatives who are really worried about how extreme the Conservatives have become.”
He repeatedly mentioned Tory leader Kemi Badenoch describing the Lib Dems as “people who fix church roofs”, but said it did not bother him.
“She meant it in a disparaging way, we’re wearing it as a badge of honour, we’re the sorts of people from the community, local champions, who do things like fix problems in the local area,” he said.
He described “massive improvements” in the finances of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council since the Lib Dems took control in 2024.
Sir Ed pointed to the “huge debt” run up by the Tories in Kent County Council, of which the Conservatives risk losing control for the first time since 1997, on Thursday.
He said: “We’ve seen the finances in much better shape, thanks to good management from the Liberal Democrats,
“That compares to the Conservatives on Kent County Council with the elections tomorrow where the Conservatives have run up a huge debt and managed the finances very badly.
Sir Ed thanked the Tunbridge volunteers for their work and signed a bundle of spatulas for them.
Despite his optimism he also said he does not make predictions for fear of taking voters for granted.
“We’ve got the Conservatives on the run haven’t we,” Sir Ed said, to cheers from his supporters.
Designer of the “magic spatulas”, councillor Martin Brice, of Culverden, Tunbridge Wells, said they ensured volunteers did not lose fingers to a dog, or crumple a leaflet on its way through a letter box.
“The logic is, we try harder,” he said.
